The Aristocats American animated musical comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions was a popular film in the early 1970s. Set in Paris, the plot follows a family of aristocratic cats who are set to gain their mistress’s fortune, much to the dismay of her butler. Thrown into the countryside, the family is helped by a feral cat as they attempt to return to their mistress’s home. We won’t go into detail about this film, but here are some of my first encounters with stray cats. Most notably, an encounter with the exceptional musician Scat Cat who performs the song “Ev’rybody Wants to Be a Cat” with several other cat musicians. Cat jazz in its full form!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rrXR6n0RTY&t=106s
Cats!
The cat (Felis catus), also called domestic cat and house cat, is a small carnivorous mammal. It is an obligate carnivore, requiring a predominantly meat-based diet. Its retractable claws are adapted to kill small prey species such as mice and rats. It has a strong, flexible body, quick reflexes, and sharp teeth, and its night vision and sense of smell are well developed. It is a social species, but a solitary hunter and a crepuscular predator. Cat communication includes meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, grunting, and body language. It can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by small mammals. It secretes and perceives pheromones. Cat intelligence is evident in its ability to adapt, learn through observation, and solve problems. Advances in archeology and genetics have shown that the domestication of the cat began in the Near East around 7500 BCE.
But if you’re interested in more, just google it.
Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, has long been known for its stray cats. It hosts a sizeable feral cat population, with estimates ranging from a hundred thousand to over a million stray cats. Many Turkish citizens view street animals as communally owned pets rather than traditional strays, and the country has a blanket no-kill, no-capture policy.
The wide prevalence of cats in the city can be connected back to Ottoman times. The vast majority of Istanbul’s houses were made of wood, which gave shelter and enabled the proliferation of the mouse and rat populations. This made cats’ presence a necessity in the city. Various media sources connected the positive attitude towards cats in Turkey to Islam, the most prevalent faith in the country.
Anyway, cats are everywhere. On the street, in front of bars, shops, hidden in side streets. I’ve even seen them in mosques, in prayer poses.
Residents give them food and water. Not far from Hagia Sophia I saw a vending machine for feeding stray animals.
But not everything is so rosy. Stray cats are mostly not vaccinated against diseases. They can be carriers of viral diseases. So petting and stroking is not always the smartest move. In areas of the city where there are not so many tourists, care for them is less. Due to insufficient hydration, older cats have chronic kidney failure.
Eye infections and herpes occur as a result of poor hygiene.
In addition, Istanbul has very heavy traffic, so many stray cats in the city are hit by cars, killed, or injured.
However, let’s be positive.
Istanbul would not be what it is without stray cats.